For the Love of Pie
by Relm Wanderer
Summary: My take on how Gourry and Sylphiel might have first met. And yes it's another G/S fic because I'm crazy and I keep writing them.


_Yet another Gourry/Sylphiel fic that I wrote for my G/S Shrine:_

_relm . bravepages . com _

_Please come visit me okay? I'm lonely..._

**For the Love of Pie**

By Relm

It had been a year since Gourry Gaberieve had left his home to pursue the life of a wandering mercenary swordsman. He travelled alone, doing odd jobs for money and food. Sometimes it was defeating a demonic foe, other times it was just hard labour. Though to Gourry it was rewarding emotionally, it wasn't rewarding to his stomach.

It was always the poor people that needed the most help. And they didn't have much to offer him for the jobs Gourry did. But Gourry couldn't say no, for he wanted to be as honourable as any true knight would be. To truly deserve the sword that hung off his belt.

Because you see Gourry had in his possession a special sword. It was one that had been passed down through many generations. It was always supposed to go to the most deserving of the bloodline.

And for Gourry's family it wasn't him.

It's not that Gourry wasn't a good kid. Sure he was a little slower than some kids when it came to school, but he never faltered on his sword training. He trained harder than anyone. He wanted to be the one who the sword was passed on to so badly. But his parents and grandparents chose Gourry's older brother.

Gourry was one of four children in the Gaberieve family. He had a twin sister named Jinnifer (or Jinny as they called her), a younger brother named Silas and an older brother named Aaron. When Aaron was really young he showed great talent with a sword. He was a natural, it was as if he was born to be a swordsmen. Though it came so easily to Aaron, he trained very hard to be the best he could possibly be. And by the age of fifteen, Aaron Gaberieve had named one of the best swordsmen around. His family was so proud of him. Even Gourry.

Gourry didn't resent Aaron. In fact he loved and admired Aaron. When Gourry was very little Aaron was the one person he looked up to most. Gourry wanted to be like his older brother so bad. So he trained and trained hard.

So when it came down to who the Gaberieve family was to hand their heirloom to, Aaron was the most natural choice. But just a year before Aaron was to finally be given the honour of being the one to wield the sword of light Aaron had a change of heart. Aaron after so many years of training and fighting realized that he couldn't stand violence anymore. He didn't want to fight or kill anyone. He wanted to help people in another peaceful way. So that year before he was to take the sword, Aaron entered priesthood. And Aaron was very good at being a priest, as it turned out he was very good at white magic and healing people was something he greatly enjoyed.

Though Aaron had turned his back on the way of the sword his family still insisted that Aaron take the sword of light. It was meant for him. But Aaron refused. There was no discussion amongst the family of Gourry, Jinny or Silas taking the sword. Aaron's parents and grandparents were very insistent that Aaron and Aaron alone take it. Gaberieve family had a long proud history of being the best swordsmen in the world (or the world as they knew it in the monster barrier) and for the eldest son to turn his back on their legacy was extremely shameful.

Gourry wanted the sword so badly. He tried so hard to prove his worth as a swordsman. But his family still insisted on Aaron. As usual Gourry's achievements were always overlooked and overshadowed by his older brother. Gourry didn't resent Aaron for this; he knew that he wasn't as good as Aaron when it came to fighting.

There were great arguments in the Gaberieve household that lasted for years. There didn't seem to be a solution in sight. Gourry's parents and grandparents were being stubborn and so was Aaron. So Gourry did the only thing he could think of doing to stop the fighting.

He took the sword of light and ran.

This was not the way Gourry wanted the sword of light, but it was the only way he could help stop the fighting in the family. He didn't know what his family thought of him. Because once he stole the sword he didn't look back.

Since Gourry didn't feel that he deserved the sword of light he did everything he could to be more like his brother Aaron. So that meant helping people. As many as possible.

But every man needs to eat. And Gourry hadn't eaten in while.

'I'm so hungry...' He mentally whined. His stomach grumbled in agreement. Since leaving home Gourry didn't have a map. He travelled around aimlessly lost as to where he was. For the most part it was okay. But it had been a while since the last town he had been in, and he was wondering if he would ever find any civilization amongst the trees that surrounded him. 'I should have brought a map.' More whining.

The one constant thing he used a reference to where he was going was a very large tree. At some point he had spotted the tree and decided that he was going to go towards it. He didn't know of any town nearby, it just looked so big and cool that he wanted to see it close up.

'I'm thirsty too.' Gourry fished out his water canteen and was dismayed to find it empty. "What am I going to do?" He said out loud.

The forest seemed to answer Gourry's prayers as he went over a hill and past some trees and happened upon a lake. Greedily Gourry drank the water. Since he was so thirsty the water tasted so sweet. It was absolutely delicious. So much so that he almost forgot he was hungry.

Almost.

His stomach grumbled once more despite the water that partially filled it. Gourry quickly finished drinking and filled his canteen before continuing his trek towards the great tree.

As Gourry got closer to the tree he was amazed by its' size. It was huge! Gourry had never seen a tree so big before in his life. But he didn't dwell on the size for too long as his actions as always were ruled by his stomach. On the air he smelled something warm and sweet. The aroma was so delicious and comforting that Gourry almost felt as he was floating towards it. He passed a couple trees before he came to what was the edge of a town surrounding the great tree.

A moderate sized house was the first thing Gourry saw. And cooling on the windowsill was the source of the delicious aroma. It was a freshly baked pie with steam still wafting off it. Gourry couldn't tell what sort of pie it was, but he did decide something. It looked delicious.

He knew it was wrong, that pie wasn't his. But he couldn't help himself. Pie was one of his favourite deserts (besides ice cream) and it had been so long since he had last had it. And he was so hungry too. So Gourry gave into his temptations and stole the pie.

Sitting behind some bushes Gourry secretly gobbled up the whole pie. The pie had looked like a masterpiece. But as good as it looked it tasted even better. Gourry couldn't remember ever having a pie that tasted so good!

"Oh my! What's happened to my pie?" Gourry heard a soft female voice off in the distance.

Gourry looked up from the now empty pie pan to see a girl with long hair staring at where the pie had been cooling. Her emerald eyes were full of surprise and disappointment. Though at that moment Gourry felt as low as dirt he couldn't help but stare at the woman.

She was tall, with long dark hair and the greenest green eyes Gourry had ever seen. Her skin was fair and her slender arms and hands were as delicate as her face. She was dressed in shades of purple that brought out the green in her emerald eyes. She was beautiful. Impossibly beautiful.

"Oh dear, I guess I'll just have to bake another one of Mrs. Gnallen." She said sadly. "Oh but I don't have the ingredients to make another! I guess I'll have to go to the shops." And with that the woman walked off.

Gourry knew he should have spoken up, he should have said something. But he was silenced by the woman's delicate beauty. Even as she walked away she did so with so much grace that it was almost as though she was dancing. Once the emerald beauty was out of sight, Gourry knew what he must do. With pie pan in hand Gourry went to the young woman's front door and knocked.

An older man with brown hair opened the door with surprise on his face. "Hello? How may I help you?"

Gourry held out the pie pan in shame. "I'm Gourry Gaberieve a traveling mercenary swordsmen. And I'm sorry but I ate your pie."

...

Even though Gourry had admitted to stealing the pie, Erik the head of the Nels Rada household welcomed him in.

"Master Gourry I wouldn't worry about upsetting Sylphiel. She's used to having her pies go missing. The pie pans usually show up the next day. But you're the first to actually admit to eating one of them!" Erik ushered him to the kitchen table.

"Sylphiel?" Gourry savoured the taste of her name on his mouth. It was a lovely name that brought up images of fairies and flower petals dancing on the wind. _(Author's Note: This line was inspired by a line from Em-chan's 'The Phoenix and the Wren')_

"That's right Sylphiel. My daughter and I, Erik Nels Rada are the ones that live here in this house. Sylphiel's mother died when she was quite young so I've raised her myself. I must say I'm quite proud of my daughter; she's a shrine maiden and a great healer. She cares so much for others." Erik said quite proudly.

This made Gourry feel lousier. "Sylphiel looked very sad about the pie." Gourry mumbled as he sat down at the table.

"Really I wouldn't worry about it. As long as you enjoyed the pie. If was good wasn't it?"

Gourry nodded his head eagerly. "Oh yeah! It was the best pie I ever ate! Normally I wouldn't steal food like that."

"You must have been very hungry."

"Yeah." Gourry's stomach grumbled out loud. Yes the pie had been delicious but all it had done was wet his appetite. Before he was hungry, now he was starving.

Erik couldn't suppress the laugh roaring from his belly. "Oh! You're still hungry? You must have gone quite some time without food. I'll get you more to eat." Erik went to serve Gourry a bowl of the most delicious looking meat stew that Gourry had ever seen. "Sylphiel made this stew this morning. It's been stewing all day. Have some." He offered putting the bowl right in front of the blond swordsmen.

Gourry wanted to dive right into the bowl but he felt too guilty to. "I've already eaten her pie and now her stew too? Won't she be upset?"

"Come now, one bowl missing from the whole pot isn't going to be noticed. And even so Sylphiel would be more then upset with me if I had a guest over and let them starve. Especially an admirer of her cooking." Erik explained with a twinkle in his eyes.

Gourry blushed. He did admire Sylphiel's cooking. 'She's pretty too.' Gourry squashed that thought as he tried the stew. It was delicious!

"You know Master Gourry if you do feel badly about eating, I have a proposition for you."

Gourry stopped mid chew. "What is it?"

"Well you are a mercenary swordsmen right? What if I hired you for a job? Would you feel better about the situation then?"

"Oh yeah sure!"

"Okay but I must ask you a few questions. First off are you a descendant of the same Gaberieve family line of the great swordsman Gaberieve that slew the demon beast Zanifar?"

Suddenly the weight of the sword of light on Gourry's hip seemed much heavier then it was before. "Yes I am."

"Are you the bearer of the fabled sword of light?"

That sword just felt heavier and heavier by the second. "Yes."

"Splendid! There is this demon around these parts. He comes and terrorizes our fair city of Siaraag once a week. He steals our food and treasure and destroys homes and farms. Our city is a peaceful one devoted to healing and white magic. There is no one proficient enough in offensive magic to harm the creature. And its' hide is harder than any known armour. So the few that have tried to fight the creature with ordinary weapons have not fared well. The beast has already killed most of our skilled fighters. Could you Master Gourry rid our city of this evil?"

"Of course!" Gourry said triumphantly eating the stew as fast as he could. It was so good he didn't want to stop eating it. He was upset when he finished the last spoonful. He wanted more but he didn't want to ask for more. "I'll take care of your problem."

"That's wonderful news!"

"So when does this creature show up next?"

"It's usually once a week. How many days has it been since it last showed...?" Erik wondered lost in thought. "Why yes it's been seven days already hasn't it? So I guess that means it will come... today?" He exclaimed almost smacking himself. Originally when he had gotten up that morning he had gotten the days wrong. He had thought the beast was showing up the next day.

"Today? But Sylphiel is out buying ingredients to make another pie!" Gourry exclaimed. "She's in danger!"

Out the door Gourry rushed as he searched the city. His eyes darted around frantically hoping to spot the emerald eyed shrine maiden. Left and right he looked scanning the streets before he found her. About five blocks away there was Sylphiel carrying a large bag of groceries that she was taking home.

It was as though Sylphiel was aware she was being watched, because she stopped in her tracks and looked towards Gourry's direction. For a brief moment their eyes met and it was like the whole world stopped.

Sylphiel had always found the idea of love at first sight romantic though unlikely. But as she looked on at the tall, muscular blond swordsmen with sky blue eyes she found herself rethinking her views of love of first sight. She couldn't help but blush, more so when Gourry flashed her a big, bright smile. Sylphiel felt herself get weak in the knees as she returned his smile. 'Who is that?'

It was one of those perfect fairy tale moments that came crashing down with a big bad BOOM!

The city square fountain exploded as a demonic creature cackled. Fireball after fireball the creature threw causing anarchy.

Sylphiel was reading a protection spell when the demon tried to slash at her with its' claws. It startled her and she fell to the ground breaking her concentration. She tried to shield her face with her arms as she braced herself for the oncoming attack. But after a moment she was confused at the lack of contact. She looked up to find the claws had been blocked by that very same swordsmen she had been admiring.

Gourry had ran with all his might to block the attack the demon was about to do. Thankfully he had been fast enough and he parried the attack. "Attacking pretty girls isn't a very nice thing to do!" Gourry gritted as he pushed the demon back.

The demon didn't respond with words, it just howled as rushed at Gourry. It leaped in the air and tried to slash at Gourry's head. Gourry avoided the attack and tried to slice at the demon with his sword. But the demon parried Gourry's attack.

As the fight continued Gourry and the demon got closer to Flagoon, the sacred tree in the heart of Sairaag.

Many onlookers ran into their homes not wanting to be caught up in the fight. Sylphiel was the only one who dared to follow, watching the fight from afar.

Gourry parried attack after attack and was getting irritated that he couldn't get a clean attack. 'I've got to do something!' He looked around and spotted some rocks. As he fought Gourry brought his sword to the ground and flicked the rocks into the air at the demon.

The demon angrily swatted the projectiles while momentarily distracted.

Gourry grinned as he took his chance and slashed at the beast with his sword. But to his surprise the beast remained unharmed.

The demon laughed its' horrible laugh as if to mock Gourry. This wasn't the first time the demon had faced the business end of a sword.

'Damn I forgot what Erik said. Okay then time to get serious.' The blade from the sword popped out of its' hilt as Gourry held the handle screaming, "LIGHT COME FORTH!" The sword listened to the command of its' owner and a blade of pure light appeared.

Sylphiel covered her mouth in shock. 'A sword of light! He must be a descent of the swordsman that slew the demon beast Zanifar!'

The demon looked very afraid at that moment, and it had reason to be. With one quick slash of the sword, Gourry slay the demon.

Gourry let out a deep sigh as he sheathed his blade once more. He looked back at the destruction the fight with the demon had caused with wide eyes. 'Oh no! I destroyed part of the city! I've gotta go before I get in real trouble!'

Sylphiel went to thank their city saviour but when she got the base of Flagoon the swordsman was gone.

...

Gourry didn't know if the people of the city were going to be mad at him, but he wasn't going to take any chances. So Gourry ran before anyone could thank him or get angry with him. Though he was still a bit hungry he still felt pretty good. He had eaten a good meal and saved a pretty girl. 'Maybe I'll get to see Sylphiel again one day.' He thought blushing.

...

"Sylphiel are you alright?" Erik cried out as he met his daughter on the street.

"I am. A hero came to my rescue and killed the demon!" Sylphiel exclaimed. "He had long blond hair and wielded a sword of pure light!"

"That was Master Gourry Gaberieve. He offered to vanquish the creature to make up for stealing your pie."

Sylphiel blinked in confusion. "My pie? He ate it?"

"He was starving, and he couldn't resist. He said it was the best pie he had ever eaten."

Sylphiel blushed bright red. "Oh dear! Well I'm glad he enjoyed it."

"It seems you have another admirer of your cooking Sylphiel. But tell me, where did Master Gourry go?"

Sylphiel shrugged. "I don't know; he seems to have vanished." Sylphiel looked to Flagoon, where she had last seen him. 'Dashing into the fray to save my life and then disappearing like the wind... I hope you come back one day Gourry Gaberieve.' She sighed thinking romantic thoughts. Sylphiel didn't know it then, but Gourry had done more than steal her pie, he had stolen her heart as well.

_(Author's Note: The motivation for writing this story came to me after reading Chihiro Fujimi's 'Magnificent', a story that takes place before the beginning of Slayers giving a possibility of how Gourry and Sylphiel previously knew each other. An idea formed in my head and I mulled over it for a few weeks before I decided to tackle my own take on how Gourry and Sylphiel met. I know from researching Sylphiel fell in love with Gourry after seeing him defeating a foe but didn't actually get a chance to really meet him. As Gourry quickly ran away thereafter. In the anime Gourry knew who Sylphiel was and that she's a good cook. Implying that Gourry had eaten some of Sylphiel's food before. So I decided to try and make a possible scenario that would work for both manga and anime with some waff thrown in for fun. _

_Also Aaron, Jinny and Silas are characters created by my friend and evil co-hort Carbunkle Garnet. I didn't exactly ask permission to use his characters, but you know what he made them for RSBI my old website, so I claim them for my own devilish purposes! MWHAHAHAHAHA! Seriously he doesn't care if I use them. So I do.)_


End file.
